ABA Journal: Asked and Answered

Gary M. DuBoff says he’s very big on paying quarterly tax estimates on time. For many years, he kept a spreadsheet of everything that he spent money on, including coffee. After a year, he says, you may discover that you spend $1,200 on coffee. When it comes to retirement savings, DuBoff, a certified public accountant and a principal at Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra in its New York City office, says if you have an employer, be sure to know about all the benefits offered and take advantage of them. In this episode of Asked and Answered, Stephanie Francis Ward talks to DuBoff about how to live within your means, how to figure out your set costs, and how to budget with what’s left over.

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If you want to give a good speech that will resonate with people, you should not use notes or an outline, says Gerard Gregoire, vice president of litigation services for the West region at Allstate. Instead, he says, know what you want to say forward and backward—much like you would a case file before trial—and practice on your own, so that you know the information so well you don’t have to rely on notes as a reminder. In this episode of Asked and Answered with the ABA Journal’s Stephanie Francis Ward, Gregoire offers public speaking tips for lawyers and why it’s important to be authentic and connect with an audience.

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When Michael R. Anspach attended Marquette University Law School, yoga, meditation and being active in a 12-step community helped him succeed. But once the 2018 graduate started practicing at Anspach Law, those techniques didn’t work. This was because the demands of litigation made it impossible to quiet his mind, even on evenings and weekends, he says. In this episode of Asked and Answered with the ABA Journal’s Stephanie Francis Ward, Anspach talks about his road to success after law school, his self-care tips and how he learned to quiet his mind.

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Rather than relying on one prep course for the Law School Admission Test, Haley Taylor Schlitz, a 16-year-old recent college graduate, took three within a five-month period. She was accepted at nine law schools and says having study organization plans, coupled with finding her true self as a homeschooler, helped lead to her success. In this episode of Asked and Answered with the ABA Journal’s Stephanie Francis Ward, she details some of those organization plans, as well as how she’ll be spending the summer before starting law school at Southern Methodist University this fall. Not surprisingly, plans include various programs on preparing for life as a 1L.

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Some people diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder need prescription stimulants to function at the best of their abilities. But there are others who don’t have the diagnosis, but take the medicine illegally because they think it will help them perform better. It's a problem that law schools and the legal profession need to become more aware of, says Patrick Krill, an attorney and licensed and board-certified alcohol and drug counselor. Krill speaks with the ABA Journal's Stephanie Francis Ward about the extent of the issue and the dangers of illegal prescription stimulants.

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Do nearly 25% of Americans really think Ruth Bader Ginsburg is chief justice? ABA President Bob Carlson addresses gaps in public knowledge of history and government uncovered by the first Survey of Civic Literacy in this special episode of the ABA Journal’s Asked and Answered hosted by Journal reporter Amanda Robert. Carlson highlights the survey’s most surprising findings, and discusses the ABA’s plans for the data and ideas for how Americans can improve their civic knowledge in the future.

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Practice areas like cannabis law, M&A and real estate law are currently hot, but the good times never last forever, says legal recruiting consultant Valerie Fontaine of SeltzerFontaine. In this episode of Asked and Answered, she speaks with the ABA Journal's Stephanie Francis Ward about potential slowdowns and how lawyers can be thinking ahead to recession-proof their practices.

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Drawing attention to a client's plight can be a great outcome for an attorney wanting justice in a case. But what do you do when your client is trending on Twitter for all the wrong reasons? In this episode of Asked & Answered, the ABA Journal's Stephanie Francis Ward speaks with attorney Pete Wentz, an expert in crisis management and communication strategy. Wentz shares what tactics he's found helpful, when you should know that it's time to address online controversies–and what commonly given legal advice turns out to be the least helpful in putting out fires.

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When attorney Roula Allouch got involved with Bullyproof, an anti-bullying initiative with the ABA Young Lawyers Division, she quickly saw that many members' complaints were about judges. Complaining about judges is hard, Allouch tells the ABA Journal's Stephanie Francis Ward, and for the most part it's a bad idea to raise it in court while the behavior is occurring. But how should you respond? Listen to this episode for advice and information about tactics you can use to protect yourself without hurting your client's case.

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Samorn Selim had a difficult childhood. Her family fled Laos when she was young, and settled in a rough section of Stockton, California. There was violence in her neighborhood, and sometimes the family did not have enough food. So after graduating from Berkeley Law and getting a job at a big law firm in San Francisco, she thought she should be happy, she tells the ABA Journal’s Stephanie Francis Ward. But she wasn’t. Despite the large salary, private office and trial assignments, she hated her job. Finally she left the practice to do career services work at Berkeley Law. The change took $100,000 from her annual salary, and added 30 minutes to her work commute. But it taught her that getting the jobs we think we want may not actually be what’s best for us, and being honest about what sort of work fulfills you can help in choosing the right spot. In this episode of Asked and Answered, Selim shares what she learned about finding the right career fit.

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